Romeo & Juliet Expository Essay
Objective:
Expository essays require that the writer give information, explain the topic or define something. To
accomplish that, they are best developed by the use of facts and statistical information, cause and effect
relationships, or examples. Since they are factual, they are written without emotion and usually written in
the third person. That means that the use of the pronoun "I" is not usually found within the essay. This
essay explains the topic/situation/event, offers details to make the reader aware, and does not seek to
persuade a reader. The author simply resents the facts and lets the reader figure out their own opinion.
Like all kinds of essays, there is a specific format that should be followed. This can be broken down into
a three part structure:
Essay Breakdown:
12/8 Outline due Tuesday in class 40 points
12/9 Computer lab work on essay
12/10 Computer lab work on essay
12/11 Rough Draft due 40 points in class peer edit
12/14 Final Typed Draft due 100 Points Review for Final Exam
12/15-17 Final Exams
INTRODUCTION:
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State the main topic.
Offer three or more reasons/facts that support the main idea. Offer the details you will "flesh" out in the essay.
BODY:
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You must use specific evidence, examples, and to support the details you promised in the introduction. Each point
should have its own paragraph. Each sentence must relate to the topic and the sentence that came before it. This
way, the logic of the essay is easy to follow.
Be sure to use adequate transitions as they make it easy for the reader to follow the logic of the presentation.
Each paragraph should have a minimum of 3 concrete details to support the topic sentence found in the paragraph.
Be sure to weave your quotations into your essay correctly. ( I have provided a sample below)
CONCLUSION:
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Contains your feelings on the topic while maintaining your third person point of view.
Restate the main ideas.
Suggests future action that should be taken and/or ends with a prediction or warning.
Topics:
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William Shakespeare (biography)
Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson
Shakespeare authorship controversy
Renaissance Italian clothing and fashion
Michelangelo
Bernini
Ghiberti and the Baptistry Doors of Florence
Leonardo da Vinci
St. Peter’s
Astrology in the Renaissance
Stratford upon Avon (history and tourist destination)
Shakespeare’s theatre company
King Henry VIII
Queen Elizabeth I
The Stuart Kings and Queens
King Francis I of France
The Mona Lisa
Michelangelo’s David
Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry
History of the City of London
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Plant and flower symbolism in Elizabethan literature
Code of chivalry
The religious/cloistered life
Renaissance city states and politics
The Black Death
Popular song and dance of the Renaissance
Renaissance food and drink
Church music of the Renaissance
Renaissance medicine
Alchemy
the De Medici family
Verona, Italy (history and tourist destination)
Medieval castles and castle life
Additional Shakespeare play (your choice, as long as there are no
duplicates)
The Louvre (history and key pieces of art from the Renaissance
Period)
The Uffizi Galleries (history and key pieces of art from the
Renaissance Period)
Mythology found in Romeo and Juliet
Role of women in the Renaissance period
Role of Marriage in the Renaissance period
Science and Exploration. Consider names such as Galileo,
Bacon, Keppler, Drake, and Raleigh.
CHECKLIST ONE:
1. Is my thesis statement concise and clear?
2. Did I follow my outline? Did I miss anything?
3. Are my arguments presented in a logical sequence?
4. Are all sources properly cited to ensure that I am not plagiarizing?
5. Have I proved my thesis with strong supporting arguments?
6. Have I made my intentions and points clear in the essay?
Re-read your paper for grammatical errors. Use a dictionary or a thesaurus as needed. Do a spell check. Correct all errors that you can
spot and improve the overall quality of the paper to the best of your ability. Get someone else to read it over. Sometimes a second pair
of eyes can see mistakes that you missed.
CHECKLIST TWO:
1. Did I begin each paragraph with a proper topic sentence?
2. Have I supported my arguments with documented proof or examples?
3. Any run-on or unfinished sentences?
4. Any unnecessary or repetitious words?
5. Varying lengths of sentences?
6. Does one paragraph or idea flow smoothly into the next?
7. Any spelling or grammatical errors?
8. Quotes accurate in source, spelling, and punctuation?
9. Are all my citations accurate and in correct format?
10. Did I avoid using contractions? Use "cannot" instead of "can't", "do not" instead of "don't"?
11. Did I use third person as much as possible? Avoid using phrases such as "I think", "I guess", "I suppose"
12. Have I made my points clear and interesting but remained objective?
13. Did I leave a sense of completion for my reader(s) at the end of the paper?
How to Integrate Quotations
Integrating quotations means “to weave the author’s words into your own sentences.” Quotations should not just be thrown into your
essay. You may use block quotations in this research paper, but generally do not use them in a standard 2-3 page essay. Use only the
best parts of your quotation. Always document ideas and quotations of others (document means the same thing as “cite”).
Here’s an example of an INDIRECT reference and a QUOTATION that is NOT well integrated. Note the use of ellipses to indicate
missing material (which is NOT something you will need to do if you correctly integrate quotation).
The turning point in the struggle between Ralph and Jack is the killing of the sow (133-144). The sow is a mother:
“sunk in deep maternal bliss lay the largest of the lot … the great bladder of her belly was fringed with a row of piglets that
slept or burrowed and squeaked (134).
 Document ideas and references, especially direct quotations.
 Do NOT put ellipses IN FRONT of a quotation, even if the front is missing.
 Do NOT put ellipses AT THE END of a quotation, even if the back is missing.
 Do NOT use more than one period per sentence.
 ALWAYS make the mixture of the author’s words and your words grammatically correct.
 If you need to insert a word of your own, or if you need to change a letter in order to make the sentence grammatically
correct, use brackets []
“[S]unk in deep maternal bliss” (134), the sow is unaware of the danger approaching her.
Here is an example of a tightly integrated quotation.
“[S]unk in deep maternal bliss” (134), the sow is unaware of the approaching and “dreadful eruption from an
unknown world” of British boys masked as savages, who will soon be laughing at Jack’s “reeking palms” (135) as they
baptized with blood.
Note: This example has three integrated quotations in one sentence. If all the quotes come from the same page, you can put the
documentation at the end of the sentence. However, these do not come from the same page. The second quotation is not documented,
because it comes from the same page as the quotation that follows it.
This is not hard, only time-consuming. However, it is absolutely necessary that you learn to document your textual evidence, how to
choose only the best parts of the evidence, and how to smoothly integrate your evidence into your own writing.
See the reverse for an actual example from a student essay.
Name: ____________________________________Date: ___________________ Period: ______ Topic: ________________________________
Please attach to front of
essay
Outline Sheet:
___________ out of 40
Rough Draft:
___________ out of 40
Final Draft:
___________ out of 100
Comments:
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